Airbus offers a vision of what leaner, greener air travel could look like in 2050.

The world’s largest supplier of passenger aircraft in 2011, Airbus has a huge stake in the future of passenger aviation. And so its experts have been imagining what that future might look like in terms of everything from energy sources and air traffic management to new aircraft designs and passengers' in-flight experience.

The future of flight

The Future by Airbus (1/12)

The world’s largest supplier of passenger aircraft in 2011, Airbus has a huge stake in the future of aviation. And so its experts have been looking ahead towards mid-century and imagining what that future might look like in terms of everything from energy sources and air traffic management to new aircraft designs and passengers' in-flight experience.

Here a concept plane flying above a virtual Hong Kong shows off some of the technologies and features being explored by the company and the aviation industry at large. See the rest of this photo gallery for more future concepts. (Source: Airbus S.A.S)

Bionic cabin structure (2/12)

Airbus predicts that the aircraft in 2050 will have a bionic structure that mimics bird bones to allow for lighter weight structure and open panoramic views. Bone is both light and strong because its porous interior carries tension only where necessary, leaving space elsewhere.

By using bionic structures, the fuselage has the strength it needs, but can also make the most of extra space where required. This not only reduces the aircraft's weight and fuel burn, but also makes it possible to add features like oversized doors for easier boarding and panoramic windows. (Source: Airbus S.A.S)

Transparent cabin membrane (3/12)

The future cabin's bionic structure will be coated with a biopolymer membrane, suggests Airbus, which controls the amount of natural light, humidity and temperature, providing opacity or transparency on command and eliminating the need for windows. This smarter structure will make the aircraft lighter and more fuel-efficient while giving passengers 360 degree views of the skies, says the company. (Source: Airbus S.A.S)

A panoramic view (4/12)

An intelligent cabin membrane could become transparent to give passengers open panoramic views, or be dimmed to make sleeping easier. It could also present destination information, track the progress of the journey, or provide virtual views of relaxing landscapes. (Source: Airbus S.A.S)

Harvesting passenger heat (5/12)

Smart seats could harvest passenger's body heat to power aircraft systems such as holographic pop-ups projecting anything from your bedroom at home, a business conference or a peaceful garden.

Energy from body heat could be combined with energy collected from other sources, like solar panels, to fuel aircraft cabin appliances like fridges and lighting. (Source: Airbus S.A.S)

Holographic entertainment zone (6/12)

With holographic technology onboard, passengers could entertain themselves with virtual reality in-flight social activities, such as a virtual game of golf with fellow passengers, people on the ground, or even with passengers in other aircraft. (Source: Airbus S.A.S)

Formation flying (7/12)

It’s not just what we fly in, but also the way we fly that will be critical to the future of aviation. Conserving fuel is a fundamental priority. In nature, large birds sometimes fly in formation to save energy and travel further. The leading bird’s wings generate whirling masses of air which give following birds free extra lift.

Aircraft wings create the same effect and so military pilots often fly in formation. Airbus’ is looking into the use of formation flying along “express skyways” as a way to reduce fuel burn and emissions on long-haul flights. (Source: Airbus S.A.S)

Assisted take-off (8/12)

Passenger aircraft require huge amounts of engine power, and therefore fuel, to get off the ground and up to cruising altitude. A renewably-powered assisted take-off system, perhaps using electromagnetic motors, could propel aircraft into the air instead, says Airbus.

This system would allow for much lighter aircraft, with smaller engines using less fuel, which could then climb faster to optimum altitude. It would also allow for shorter runways, a key consideration in increasingly crowded megacities. (Source: Airbus S.A.S)

Eco-climb (9/12)

A continuous, very steep "eco-climb" to cruising altitude would further cut fuel use, noise and CO2 emissions, argues Airbus. This would be in contrast to today, when aircraft climb in a series of incremental – and inefficient – stages, which require more fuel. Eco-climb would also alleviate congestion through greater frequency of take-offs, says Airbus. (Source: Airbus S.A.S)

Free-glide approaches and landings (10/12)

Today’s passenger aircraft descend from altitude in stages and often end up waiting in the air before landing, forced to circle while congested airspace and runways clear. This process of descending, then levelling off, and circling wastes fuel and increases emissions.

Low-emission ground operations (11/12)

According to the International Air Transport Association (IATA), up to six million tons of CO2 could be saved each year by reduced aircraft engine taxiing on the ground. Smarter ground operations—such as optimising an aircraft’s landing position and renewably-powered taxiing vehicles—could enable pilots to switch off their engines sooner after landing and allow the aircraft to be quickly towed to the terminal building. (Source: Airbus S.A.S)

Biofuels (12/12)

Jatropha seeds, the oil of which is used to produce biofuel, are seen here in a Mexican lab. Airbus believes that by 2030 biofuels could provide up to 30 percent of all commercial aviation jet fuel. Biofuels are currently blended with kerosene and over 1,500 commercial flights have been flown on biofuels to date. Now 50/50 blend biofuels have been certified for commercial flights and the goal is a 100 percent aviation biofuel in the future.

Airbus says it encourages the development of second generation biofuels, which avoid competing with food resources. Some possible crops for these biofuels include algae, woodchip waste, camelina, waste produce, and yeast. (Source: Airbus S.A.S)

Future transport concepts

Superbus (1/18)

Developed and showcased on the streets of Groningen by the Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands, Superbus is a 15-meter long electrically powered vehicle with individual seating for 23 passengers and eight gull-wing doors per side. It resembles what might be a stretch-Lamborghini. Capable of a 250km/h cruising speed and designed to drive on normal roads, Superbus will have no fixed route with the routes being customized based on the preferred starts and destinations of the passengers, the developers say. (Source: Delft University of Technology)

Maglev train (2/18)

Shanghai's 1.2 billion dollar maglev train (magnetic levitation) arrives at Long Yang station after its 430km/h trip from Pudong Airport in Shanghai, China. The highest recorded speed of a maglev train is 581km/h, achieved in tests in Japan in 2003. There are presently two commercial maglev trains in operation, the one in Shanghai and one low-speed train in Japan.

Maglev systems use magnets to both levitate and thrust forward the train which rides a short distance above a guideway. The lack of friction between the vehicle and the ‘track’ means that acceleration and deceleration is more efficient, say Maglev supporters, who argues that Maglev trains will move more smoothly and quietly, require less maintenance and suffer less wear and tear than conventional trains with many moving parts like wheels. (Source: Reuters)

High-speed rail (3/18)

The special V150 French TGV high-speed train is seen after setting a world speed record at 574.8km/h in France's Champagne region at Bezannes, eastern France April 3, 2007. High-speed rail is expanding rapidly worldwide as a rapid, secure, and climate-friendly alternative to air and road travel.

According to the Worldwatch Institute, the number of countries using high-speed rail will jump from 14 today to 24 in 2014. Right now the countries making the most use of high-speed rail (ranked by length of track) are China, Japan, Spain, France, and Germany. Turkey, Italy, Portugal, and the U.S. plan to join them with significant systems stretching more than 1,000km while another 15 countries intend to create shorter networks. (Source: Reuters)

Wireless electric trams (4/18)

A wireless electric tram moves on a road embedded with a power strip after its launch ceremony at Seoul Grand Park in Gwacheon, south of Seoul, July 19, 2011. The Seoul Metropolitan Government and the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) manufactured the tram using a new technology called the On-Line Electric Vehicle (OLEV) system which is remotely charged via electromagnetic fields created by electric cables buried beneath the road.

Seoul Grand Park started to run three new wireless electric trams which consume no fossil fuels and do not require any overhead wires or cables. They replaced old diesel-powered carts, local media reported. (Source: Reuters)

Self driving cars (5/18)

A handout photo courtesy of the Nevada Department of Motor Vehicles shows a Google self-driven car in Las Vegas, Nevada, May 1, 2012. Google's self-driven cars will soon be appearing on Nevada roads after the state's Department of Motor Vehicles approved the nation's first autonomous vehicle license.

The move came after officials rode along on drives on highways, in Carson City neighborhoods and along the famous Las Vegas Strip, the Nevada DMV said in a statement. The Nevada legislature last year authorized self-driven cars for the state's roads, the first such law in the United States. That law went into effect on March 1, 2012. (Source: Reuters/Nevada Department of Motor Vehicles/Handout)

Hands-free driving (6/18)

Daniel Goehring of the AutoNOMOS research team of the Artificial Intelligence Group at the Freie Universitaet (Free University) demonstrates a hands-free driving of the research car named 'MadeInGermany' during a test in Berlin, February 28, 2011.

The car, a modified Volkswagen Passat, is controlled by 'BrainDriver' software with a neuroheadset device which interprets electrical signals along the scalp with additional support from latest radar sensing technology and cameras. (Source: Reuters)

Lightweight cars (7/18)

Chief Executive of German luxury carmaker BMW Norbert Reithofer poses inside a BMW i8 concept car made with carbon composites during the International Motor Show (IAA) in Frankfurt in 2011. BMW is using composite technology in its new range of "i" electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids. Whole cars made of carbon fibre composites will be available from 2013.

The company says its cars bodywork will be 250-350kg lighter than that of a conventional car of the same size, thereby reducing drag and so improving efficiency and range, thus making e-vehicles more attractive to potential customers. (Source: Reuters)

Solar powered plane (8/18)

Solar Impulse's solar-powered prototype stands after its first successful night flight attempt at Payerne airport, Switzerland, on July 8, 2010. The aircraft took off on the morning of July 7 and reached an altitude of 8,700 meters by the end of the day. It then slowly descended to 1,500 meters and flew during the night on the batteries, charged during the day by 12,000 solar cells built into its 64.3 meter-long wings, which power the four electric motors. It landed July 8 at 09.00am for a flight time of 26 hours and nine minutes, setting the longest and highest flight ever made by a solar plane. Solar Impulse is preparing and testing the plane for a planned round-the-world flight in 2014. (Source: Reuters)

Carbon fiber airplanes (9/18)

A Boeing 787 Dreamliner, owned by Qatar Airways, performs a display flight at the Farnborough Airshow 2012 in southern England, showing off a carbon-composite design its maker says is lighter, more economical to fly and more comfortable than its metal rivals. Lighter planes should result in greater fuel efficiency and therefore fewer carbon emissions per flight. (Source: Reuters)

Sitting pretty (10/18)

Mamoru Mori, Executive Director of National Museum of Emerging Science and Innovation (Miraikan) and former astronaut, rides Honda Motor Co's new UNI-CUB personal mobility device at the museum in Tokyo May 15, 2012. The new device allows the rider to control speed, up to 6km/h, and direction by shifting one's own weight. Honda and the museum will jointly conduct demonstration testing of UNI-CUB from June 2012, Honda said. (Source: Reuters)

Segway on the streets (11/18)

The Project P.U.M.A., an electric two-seat prototype vehicle with two wheels drives up 18th Street in New York City. The Project P.U.M.A. vehicle (Personal Urban Mobility and Accessibility) combines technologies from Segway and General Motors and aims to provide personal mobility with zero emissions while reducing congestion in cities. General Motors is also exploring concept vehicles that park themselves and automatically return to the user when summoned from a smartphone application. (Source: Reuters)

Robotic walking (12/18)

Fujita Health University Professor Eiichi Saito, using an ‘Independent Walk Assist’ robot, walks during a news conference showcasing Toyota Motor Corp's new robots aimed at supporting nursing and healthcare efforts in Tokyo in November 2011.

The robot, mounted onto a paralyzed leg, aims to help the knee to bend to facilitate natural walking. The robot is part of the Toyota Partner Robot series and aims for commercialization from 2013, according to the company. (Source: Reuters)

Rising above the floods (13/18)

Anusorn Adirekkittikun's eight-year-old son, Korn, climbs on the tricycle his father designed and built to move through water in a flooded neighborhood near Chao Phraya river in central Bangkok October 28, 2011. Rising sea levels and increasingly extreme weather associated with climate change mean that many urban residents will, like Adirekkittikun, have to modify the way they get around town. (Source: Reuters)

HydroCar (14/18)

Designer and builder Rick Dobbertin and his wife are seen during a water test in the Dobbertin HydroCar. Dobbertin, of Pennellville in upstate New York, spent almost nine years and 300,000 dollars building the HydroCar. It has a 762 horsepower engine and travels at speeds up to 160km/h on land and 40-48km/h on water. In water, the car is buoyed by pontoons that, on land, are raised and become its fenders. (Source: Reuters)

The return of sail power (15/18)

The SkySails Beluga ship docks in the port of Guanta in the city of Puerto La Cruz, 320km west of Caracas, Venezuela on February 5, 2008. The 10,000-ton 'MS Beluga SkySails' left Germany on January 22 for Venezuela and its computer-guided kite system was deployed after it reached the trade winds near the Azores. The system resulted in 10 to 15 percent reduction in fuel consumption, which amounts to 1,000 to 1,500 dollars per day savings.

Bus rapid transit (16/18)

A view of what the Curitiba City Hall called the world's longest articulated bus, as it was presented to the press before going into service on the Brazilian city's public transportation grid in April 2011. The bus, made in Brazil by Volvo with a Neobus chassis, has a capacity of 250 passengers, is 28 meters long, 2.6 meters wide, and is powered with biodiesel made from soybeans.

Curitiba is famous for its bus rapid transit system which now carries 2.2 million passengers daily and has become an inspiration for similar systems elsewhere featuring dedicated bus lanes. While the city’s population has doubled since the system was introduced, its car traffic has declined by 30 percent. (Source: Reuters)

Electric rickshaws (17/18)

A man cleans electric tricycles on display before their launch at Mandaluyong City in Metro Manila April 13, 2011. An initial 20 units of electric tricycles were transferred by the Asian Development Bank to the city of Mandaluyong as part of its funded project to introduce energy-efficient transportation alternatives in the Philippines. (Source: Reuters)

Road Train in Spain (18/18)

A convoy of vehicles remote controlled by the lead truck drives down a public highway outside Barcelona, Spain. The first SARTRE (SAfe Road TRains for the Environment) road train was tested among other road users in May 2012, covering approximately 200km at 85 km/h.

The road train was comprised of three Volvo cars plus one truck automatically driving in convoy behind a lead vehicle driven by a professional driver. All the vehicles were equipped with cameras, radar, laser sensors and wireless communications that enabled them to mimic the lead vehicle's movements, leaving their passengers to relax. (Source: Volvo Car Corporation)